When breeding poultry, farmers ask many questions related to its maintenance. Among them, one is the most relevant: how to clip the wings of chickens so that they do not fly, and also whether it is worth doing it or not.

Bird care rules

When raising chickens, the most valuable product obtained from them is the egg. They can not only eat, but also make various dishes from it, and various necessary products are also produced on its basis: mayonnaise, shampoo, creams, etc. The egg contains many amino acids, and doctors allow even infants to give it. To get an egg, you need to know all the subtleties of care that a chicken will need.

Firstly, it is easy to take care of them, and secondly, little money for breeding and maintenance will be required. You need to make or buy a chicken coop so that there is enough light in it. The chicken coop is placed in such a place that there is an elevation. Ceilings should be 2 meters high.

How to clip the wings of chickens so they don't fly

Nutrition will require a lot of vitamins, the correct diet must be varied. In the summer, feed is given to the bird three or four times a day. Do the same in winter. Usually fed in the early morning, and the last time a day - in the late evening. It is not necessary to overfeed, otherwise the bird will become lethargic, and egg production will decrease.

It is necessary to give fishmeal, cake, bone meal, which contain protein. Also, the birds must receive fat, for this they give them grains of corn or oats. Fiber or carbohydrates are given in very small quantities. For the birds to get vitamins, vegetables and green legumes are poured on them.

Why do birds have their wings clipped?

How to clip turkeys' wings?

Usually chickens and roosters walk on the ground, looking for worms and bugs. However, they can easily fly over the fences into the garden of the hostess or neighbor and cause irreparable damage to the plantings. They can also be caught by a cat, dog, fox, hawk, etc.

Important! It has been proven that a chicken can fly over fences of 2 m in height, and some even at 4. There is even a recorded record when a chicken flew a distance of 92 m. cut off.

How to trim your wings properly

Rose angel wings

Usually a bird's wing is taken, then the longest of the feathers is carefully trimmed. It needs someone to hold the chicken as it will break out. You also need a basket or box, it will fit from cardboard, a bag. It is necessary to take scissors and catch the very "hero of the occasion".

A small step-by-step instruction on how to clip the wings of chickens:

  • Take a basket, bag or box and cover the bird.
  • Catch gently, trying not to scare. A frightened bird can behave extremely unpredictably - more than once people have been injured from their beak or claws. When frightened, chickens flap their wings, and, unsurprisingly, you can really cut yourself with feathers.
  • Press down and give some time for the chicken to calm down.
  • Next, the assistant must take the wing and deploy it.
  • In this case, the flight feathers of the bird should open.
  • Cut off the first 10 pieces from them by only 6 centimeters.

In fig. below is what feathers you need to trim and in what order.

Feather trimming scheme

Attention! More pruning is not recommended, as this can not only damage the lining, but also affect very important blood vessels.

You can even cut one wing and watch the bird.If she tries to take off, and at the same time loses her balance, then it means that she will not fly away anywhere.

The rooster is usually heavier than the chicken, and is in no hurry to fly away from its usual territory. It is generally not recommended to clip its wings, as they are an important part of grooming hens. Changes in the behavior of the rooster after undercutting, when he refused to carry out his duties, were repeatedly noticed.

Important! It is undesirable for a rooster to clip wings. However, if it was noticed that the rooster can go beyond the territory allotted to him by the owner, and he does this often, his feathers are cut off, but it is necessary to cut along the shaft.

Before clipping the wings of a chicken, make sure the perches are not too high, otherwise the birds will simply not be able to get there.

Tips and tricks from experienced poultry farmers

  • Feathers other than the above should not be removed; they serve as natural isolation for the bird.
  • If the person is not sure that he can handle the pruning himself, it is better to call someone more experienced.
  • When the moulting process begins, the chicken trim from the fly wing will not fall out by itself, then the owners will need to take the chicken and carefully pull these trims out on their own.
  • During the molting period, it is not advised to clip the wings, the bird is already under great stress. They are not active, eat little, look boring. The metabolic imbalance is to blame for everything.

Chicken in flight

How to give nettles to chickens

Not everyone knows what to do when chickens fly over the fence. Owners act differently, much depends on the breed. Someone shortens, cutting off by 4-5 cm, so as not to look for their birds in other people's plots, not to quarrel with neighbors, not to waste nerves and time.

Note! Feather trimming in no way prevents chickens from hatching eggs. However, cutting too short is not recommended.

For example, if you take the Pavlovskaya breed, it needs to trim the feathers. If a bird has too much weight, for example, like the Brahma breed, there is no point in pruning - it will still not be able to climb the wing.

If the owners notice that the birds overcome the fences, they often wonder what to do to prevent the chickens from flying over the fence. If this is repeated more than once, it is best to clip their wings to avoid further excesses.

Experienced farmers prune either in the evening or early in the morning. In the evening, pruning is done in the dark, when the birds have already settled down for the night. They can't see anything, so they won't experience too much stress. The only thing is that these are not very comfortable conditions for the owner.

How to properly spread your wing

In the morning, the wings are cut off at the moment when they are released from the hen house or shed. They open the door and catch one piece at a time. Most often, only one wing is trimmed, then the chicken will be able to jump off the perch, but will not fly up the fence and will not go to the neighboring garden.

Important! It is impossible to arrange high nests for chickens, because if they have clipped wings, then they will not be able to fly up there or fly off, they can break something for themselves, there were cases when the hens beat off their ovaries and then could not lay.

Individual farmers arrange a net with large cells over the area intended for chickens, this does not allow birds to fly away anywhere, and also protects them from various predators.

Some, when trimming feathers, cover the chickens' heads with something, for example, a sack or a bag, someone catches them when feeding. Everyone chooses the method that suits him best.